Objective: To provide medical services, community education about HIV/AIDS, training for social workers and team leaders, and nutritional counseling and services.

Commitment: Support the “Petite Flame” medical center near Kinshasa, DRC, to reach 85,000 patients during the first three years of operation. Those served would include persons suffering from HIV/AIDS and infectious diseases including Tuberculosis and Malaria, orphans, other children needing medical assistance, counseling and educating families suffering the consequences of infectious diseases, and youth groups living in rural areas.

Background: Dr. Monika Maria Wolff of the Focolare Movement operates an outreach center called “Petite Flame” in Kinshasa, DRC together with local physicians, nurses, and teachers. In the DRC, most people cannot afford a specialist, so a simple eye infection easily can lead to blindness. A few years ago, Monika and a teacher for the blind started a new program to work with blind children. They assisted the most vulnerable, and the center grew rapidly beyond its capacity. With seed money from members of New Humanity in other countries, they set up a small ophthalmology center and trained volunteers to go out into the neighborhoods to screen children. They have seen more than 2,000 children and have treated many of them with glasses and medical care. Last year, they began a similar program for deaf children.

Initial funding for the “Petite Flame” out-reach center of $250,000 has come from profits shared by businesses in New Humanity’s Economy of Communion in Freedom (EoC) project in which businesses commit a substantial portion of their profits to the poor. This seed money was used to buy land and buildings for the Medical Center: The Prometheus Company of Genoa, Italy (represented at the Clinton Global Initiative Conference), has pledged an additional $12,000 this year. New Humanity Inc., an NGO representing the Focolare Movement having General Consultative Status with ECOSOC carries out more than 1,000 projects like this one in over 60 countries, providing volunteers, cultural assistance and additional funding for this project.

Partnership Opportunity: The expansion of the activities toward the various HIV/AIDS program objectives are linked to the project’s funding, that is slowly progressing through small private contributions. This project is seeking $938,000 to complete its funding needs.

Update:
December 2005:
A total of $12,000 was donated to the “Petite Flame” Medical Center by Prometheus Company of Genoa, Italy. Grant proposals were submitted to seek additional funding.

March 2006:
"Petite Flame” has been able to open 2 new social centers in the interior of Democratic Republic of Congo for children in need: Kikwit and Idiofa. With respect to the education activities of blind children, it has been upgraded with some special tools for the production of small items to sell and of writing machines for Braille. Also, there is the very important action of taking care of AIDS orphans. Out of the 1,200 children supported by the “Petite Flame” Center in Kinshasa, 32 became orphaned in 2005 due to their care-takers dying of HIV/AIDS or AIDS related diseases. The center was able to find homes for each of these children, or even for groups of children, keeping siblings together. The children and their “parents” are reported to be well integrated and happy.